Princeton Library Lounge

The Official ABMS Directory of Board Certified Medical Specialists is an invaluable reference tool for researching your doctors’ credentials and for identifying medical specialists within a given field. The four volume set includes information on more than 695,000 board certified physicians nationwide and is organized geographically by city and state to simplify your search.

Additionally, America’s Top Doctors and Top Doctors. New York Metro Area (published by Castle Connolly) “highlights doctors recognized by their peers for their excellence in providing care for specific diseases and problems”. These directories and many more useful health reference materials are available for your perusal on the second floor of the library. (Submitted by Ji Hae Ju, Reference Librarian)

Did you know you can ask a librarian for help researching a topic or to find the answer to a nagging question any time of the day or night?

Of course, our reference staff is always available here during library hours, and if you're not able to come in to talk with us in person, we're just a phone call or email away. Just click on the Ask A Librarian link to find out how to contact us.

No, we don't answer questions in the middle of the night. But, if you've Googled your question to death and we've closed the doors here and called it a day, all is not lost. Try logging on to New Jersey's statewide live chat reference service at http://www.qandanj.org. You can also use the service during library hours, and if you do, you may actually get one of us. Chances are, though, you'll get a librarian at one of the other 43 public and academic libraries throughout New Jersey who also staff QandANJ.

What makes it possible for QandANJ to offer reference assistance 24/7 is the fact that we are backed up by librarians staffing comparable programs around the country and freelance librarians who cover the graveyard shift. If New Jersey librarians are helping other customers when you log in, you'll get a librarian from another state. If you're on after 9:00 pm, you'll be chatting with a librarian on the West Coast (at least until midnight) or a librarian freelancing from home into the wee hours of the morning.

Here’s a comment from one of our many satisfied customers: "Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my question so thoroughly! Librarians rock!" We'd love to hear your comments, too.

(Submitted by C. Harper, Reference Librarian)

When was the last time you sat down with a five volume reference set and had trouble tearing yourself away? That’s exactly what will happen if you open even one volume of the new Historical Statistics of the United States. Browsing is a joy and the index is excellent. As Newsweek states “Many ordinary students and scavengers of facts, not just academics, should be able to tap this treasure of figures.” Kirkus calls it “a numerical atlas of the American past.”

Here is a sampling of the fascinating wealth of data:

37% of nonfarm homes were owner-occupied in 1890 but fewer than 1/3 of them were mortgaged. By 1990, 65% were owner-occupied and 2/3 were financed by mortgages.

Voter turnout in the presidential election of 1876 was 82.9%. In 1996 it was 52.1%.

The number of people under 18 who have asthma almost doubled between 1982 and 1995.

The average annual temperature in Central Park in 1895 was 53.1; in 1998 it was 57.2. But annual precipitation in 1895 was 35.37 inches and in 1998 it was 48.69 inches.

It is estimated that between the time of Native Americans’ first contact with Europeans and 1900, their numbers were reduced by 2/3 and over 100 distinct tribes disappeared entirely. All 969 hostile engagement with Indians from 1866-1891 are detailed including casualty figures for both sides. How these statistics were gathered is explained in fascinating detail in the essay which precedes the tables.

Shameful as these statistics are, they are matched by the section on slavery which also has an incredibly interesting introductory essay. Just prior to the Southern secession before the Civil War, the price for a “prime field hand” had reached an all time high of $1500. In 1820 there were 16,824 African Americans living in New Jersey. 12,422 of them were slaves. In 1860, Virginia had the most slaves at 490,865, followed closely by Georgia at 462,198.

The dates, places and names of every battle campaign in every war ever fought by the army, navy, air force and army air force from 1775-1995 are listed.

So, come on up to the second floor, grab a volume or two, sink into one of our easy chairs, and lose yourself in the numbers of America’s past.

(Submitted by Jane Brown, Manager, Reference and Adult Services)

It’s tax season! Once again, the library has a collection of the most common tax forms. We have the federal 1040, 1040A, and 1040EZ instruction booklets and forms as well as 1040NR and 1040NREZ. These are available for you to take with you. We also have copies of Schedule A/B, Schedules C, D, and SE, Earned Income Credit (EIC), 1040X, and 1040A Schedule 1. This year, as in the past, we have the loose leaf binder of reproducible forms. The library has also received the books of popular tax publications. All of these and more can be found online at www.irs.gov.

After much delay, the New Jersey 1040 booklets have finally arrived. NJ1040 and NJ1040 Non-Resident are the only forms we have. This year, New Jersey has discontinued Package NJX. But the good news is that more forms can be found online and can be downloaded and some can be filed electronically. New Jersey tax forms can be found at http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/index.html?online.htm~mainFrame.

Submitted by G. Stratton.

How can you take the headache and uncertainty out of purchasing insurance—any kind of insurance? TheStreet.com Ratings Guides will definitely help. The mission of this service is to “provide fair, objective ratings to help professionals and consumers alike make educated purchasing decisions.” They rate companies selling specific types of insurance and insurance related services from “A” (Excellent) to “E” (Very Weak). In addition, they provide clear explanations for each type of insurance, various kinds of coverage available, things to keep in mind when considering purchase, and other helpful information.

There are two series:
*The Consumer Guide Series which includes Medicare prescription drug coverage, long-term care insurance, Medicare supplement insurance, homeowners insurance, automobile insurance, term life, variable annuities and elder care choices. Some of these guides such as automobile and homeowners only give A and B rated companies for each state.

*The analytic guide series which lengthy comparative index to companies in the field and analysis of the largest companies in the field to the letter rating. These include bond and money market mutual funds, life and annuity insurers, property and casualty insurers, and health insurers.

Take the guesswork out of insurance. Stop by our reference section and check out TheStreet.com. The Consumer Guide Series is in the consumer corner, and the analytic guides are in the 300 section of the regular reference area, both on the second floor.

Submitted by J. Brown.

Is it time to clean out your closets and find a home for those clothes that no longer fit or suit your taste? If so, here are some folks who will welcome your donations of gently used, clean clothing. Call ahead to find out hours when clothing can be dropped off or to ask if pickup can be arranged. And please let us know if you know of a place we have missed.

Presbyterian Church of Lawrenceville
2688 Main Street (Route 206)
Lawrenceville, NJ 08646
(609) 896-1212
www.pclawrenceville.org/mission.html

Rescue Mission of Trenton
98 Carroll Street
Trenton, NJ 08605
(609) 695-1436
www.rescuemissionoftrenton.org

Military Order of the Purple Heart
415 Keim Blvd.
Burlington, NJ 08016
(609) 239-1553
http://www.purpleheartpickup.org/
(They pick up in Princeton at selected times only. Residents are notified by mail in advance when they will be in our area.)

Fisherman’s Mark
50 York Street
Lambertville, NJ
(609) 397-0194
http://www.fishermansmark.org/home.html

Goodwill Industries
1628 N. Olden Ave.
Ewing, NJ 08638
(609) 392-2865
http://locator.goodwill.org/

Vietnam Veterans of America
New Jersey Service Area (including Mercer County)
(800) 775-8387
www.clothingdonations.org/maps/newJersey.htm
(Can schedule pickup online)

Last updated 7/9/2008

Submitted by C. Harper.

Impartial information about the presidential candidates and the issues confronting the voting public are at a premium during the election season. The following websites help separate the wheat from the chaff in our quest to make informed decisions about the candidates.

The League of Women Voters Education Fund
www.VOTE411.org
A "one-stop-shop" for election related information, providing nonpartisan information to the public with both general and state-specific information.

Annenberg Public Policy Center
http://www.factcheck.org/
A nonpartisan, nonprofit, "consumer advocate" for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics by the monitoring of factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. The Annenberg Political Fact Check is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.

St. Petersburg Times/CQ
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/
PolitiFact is a project of the St. Petersburg Times and Congressional Quarterly to help the public find the truth in the presidential campaign. Every day, reporters and researchers from the Times and CQ analyze the candidates' speeches, TV ads and interviews and determine whether the claims are accurate.

Project Vote Smart
http://www.votesmart.org/
Picture this: thousands of citizens (conservative and liberal alike) working together, spending endless hours researching the backgrounds and records of thousands of political candidates and elected officials to discover their voting records, campaign contributions, public statements, biographical data (including their work history) and evaluations of them generated by over 100 competing special interest groups. Every election these volunteers test each candidate's willingness to provide citizens with their positions on the issues they will most likely face if elected through the Political Courage Test.

The Tax Foundation
http://www.taxfoundation.org/
The mission of the Tax Foundation is to educate taxpayers about sound tax policy and the size of the tax burden borne by Americans at all levels of government. From its founding in 1937, the Tax Foundation has earned a reputation for independence and credibility.

The Tax Policy Center
http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/
The Tax Policy Center is a joint venture of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution. Made up of nationally recognized experts in tax, budget, and social policy who have served at the highest levels of government, TPC provides timely, accessible analysis and facts about tax policy to policymakers, journalists, citizens, and researchers.

Center for Responsive Politics
http://www.opensecrets.org/
The Center for Responsive Politics is the nation's premier research group tracking money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy. Nonpartisan, independent and nonprofit, the organization aims to create a more educated voter, an involved citizenry and a more responsive government.

Submitted by Barbara Silberstein.